A well-placed F-sharp barre
by Giannoulias
Summary: Useless stupid drabble. I don't know why I decided to publish this. Title not really related.


**Author's Note:** I wrote this a couple months ago. It's been up on DeviantArt, and I'm publishing it here because, why not. Enjoy.

P.S. I regret nothing.

* * *

The grounds of the Institute of War were absolutely beautiful on summer afternoons like this one - fluffy white clouds in a bright blue sky, the sun peeking out just enough to be seen but not enough to be unpleasant, a gentle breeze causing waves to pulse through the ocean of lush emerald grass. It was an absolutely perfect day to lounge outside with a friend, watching the clouds roll by and talking about life. So that's exactly what Taric and Ezreal were doing.

Everyone said they made a great pair. It was true - most times when they were summoned together onto Summoner's Rift, they would completely dominate the other team. Taric's skill with gems perfectly complemented all of Ezreal's weaknesses - Taric could stun their opponents to make it easier for Ezreal to aim his shots, pierce their enemies' armor and empower themselves so Ezreal could do more damage, surround Ezreal (and himself) with enchanted gems to protect them from damage, and heal themselves from any damage they did take. It was a perfect match.

But even off the field, they made a perfect pair. Neither cared much for conversation, but even between their many long, comfortable silences, they always had something to talk about, when they felt like it. On this day, Ezreal was feeling particularly talkative.

"Man, you should have seen her!" Ezreal gushed. "It was amazing! Every time I thought I was about to die, she would swoop in and save me! She had all the right moves! I mean, first she'd throw her cool little tornado thing, and then she'd put her shield thingy on me, and I'd flash into the enemy and BAM! They were dead in like three hits. I mean, man, I'm good, but I sure couldn't have done it without her, you know? And then later in the game she just did everything at the right time, perfect ults, perfect everything! I couldn't even believe what I was seeing. We had like eight times as many kills as them by the time they surrendered. I mean, obviously they were going to - they hadn't even touched one of our towers by the end. Janna is just so awesome! And she's not bad to look at either, am I right? I mean, damn...I think I'm in love."

Taric listened patiently to Ezreal's excited chatter. He was very animated - his hands illustrated every part of his tale of the "epic battle" that had occurred on Summoner's Rift earlier today. Apparently, they had somehow managed to pull through, despite Ezreal spending most of the laning phase somewhat...distracted. The first summoner had chosen Ezreal to be his champion, and his partner had chosen Janna. Taric's feelings weren't hurt by not being chosen - he understood that not every team required his skills. He loved having a chance to defend others and show what his gems could do, but he knew that it wasn't always possible for him to fit into certain compositions.

Still...he felt a strange sensation while listening to Ezreal talk about Janna. She was a very nice girl, but for some reason, Taric suddenly resented every single part of her - her nice smile, her gentle voice, her friendly eyes, her protective personality, her...womanly assets. Especially those. But most importantly of all was the fact that he could use female pronouns to describe her. Her.

"But I mean you probably notice stuff like that all the time, right?" Ezreal continued, oblivious to Taric's thoughts. "I mean, you get put with Sivir a lot, and she's really something, huh? Or what about Miss Fortune? God, she's so gorgeous. Oh oh oh, or, how bout Ashe? Or Vayne? Man, so many hot girls...I really love this place."

Taric hid a smile. Ezreal was always entertaining, but despite being extremely aware of his surroundings at all times, he seemed to frequently miss what was right under his nose. Taric never joined in when Ezreal began talking about women - it was a topic on which he simply did not have much to say. But Ezreal had plenty to say, so Taric listened as patiently as he could.

"Hey Taric," said Ezreal, sitting up suddenly. "You've been pretty quiet. And you have that smile on your face. I bet I know what it means." Had he been smiling? He thought he had concealed it well. Apparently not. "I bet you're thinking about someone right now, right? I bet you like someone, riiight?"

Ezreal looked at Taric with eyes the color of the ocean on a clear day. The afternoon sun fell just behind his head, making his golden hair glow like a halo. His smooth skin was positively radiant in the sunshine, and his smile could light up an entire city.

"I guess you could say that," Taric finally managed.

"Well, who is she?"

"Just someone."

"Oh, come on, don't be so vague! We're friends, why can't you tell me?"

Friends. It was funny how such a nice word could hurt so much.

"It's...complicated."


End file.
